CityRacks Design Competition Winner Announced

Copenhagen designers Ian Mahaffy and Maarten De Greeve have won New York's CityRacks Design Competition with their floating circle design. Almost 5,000 cast metal 'Hoop' racks are planned to be installed throughout the city over the next 3 years.

5 Comments

Wish they had picked a local firm as the winner. Jeff Miller's would have been fine. Thanks City Racks for the nod to an already established awesome city in the world of ID. Of course congrats to the winners but this one does nothing for the NY design industry, a talented and diverse group. What's next Spanish built bus stations . . . oh wait . . . never mind

Call me a realist, but I doubt it's going to look like the rendering or the photo of their installation above in the final implementation. The problem with the design of the last upside down U shaped racks was that the bolts could be pried off the concrete. They'd have to come up with a more secure way to fasten them down and that teeny point of contact they have looks flimsy.
See: http://www.flickr.com/photos/voodoohoodoo/535416970/

I had a brief email exchange with Ian when the finalists were first announced and he mentioned his disappointment with installation of their prototype at Astor Place, it's intended to be mounted so that the circle looks like it's floating on the ground. According to the New York Times, Seth Solomonow, a spokesman for the Transportation Department had this to say about the planned installation.
"The final securing mechanism hasn’t been decided, but we are evaluating the sturdiest and most cost-effective method. One option is to bolt it and add a protective flange at the base. The other is to fasten it to the ground using subsurface mounting components."
link: http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/14/hoop-wins-bike-rack-design-contest
Does anyone agree it's going to be hard to find a solution that will survive on the streets while preserving the desired 'floating' aesthetic?

While I love the simplicity of the design, I wonder if this is the most secure design? It seems like such a small area is in contact with the ground, and unlike the others which are bolted, it must be inset in the sidewalk somehow correct? I just feel like I could round house kick that thing and break it off. haha.

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Photos courtesy of Coach Camera Supply, Huntington Beach, CA.